Lead Substation Physical Design Engineer

Job Description

GAI Consultants is seeking a Substation Physical Design Engineer who will perform physical design tasks, provide technical guidance, training, and mentoring of staff, and assist with design reviews as required. The successful candidate will work on various substation engineering projects, including detailed design for high‑voltage substation projects from 12 kV through 500 kV. Thrive in GAI's corporate culture that empowers employee advancement with support for career and professional development and engages with staff to build mutual trust and respect and consideration for diverse perspectives, people, experiences, and ideas.

• Manage, design, and perform design checks related to technical activities, including but not limited to the following.
• Develop and/or revise existing drawings for one‑lines, physical arrangements, grounding, conduit, lighting, lightning protection, and rigid bus analysis, producing the associated drawings using client‑specific CAD software.
• Create physical layouts and substation designs that integrate with protection and control drawings.
• Create project criteria.
• Develop design specifications, including the overall bill of materials.
• Design and size auxiliary systems, including AC/DC load centers, batteries, and chargers.
• Design and size conduit and high‑voltage conductors.
• Order long‑lead item materials.
• Review junior engineer designs and verify they meet client standards and specifications.
• Document QA/QC reviews, maintain record documents, and communicate information to the team.
• Travel to other offices, meet with clients, and attend project‑specific meetings on a regular basis.
• Manage tasks on multiple projects in accordance with GAI's high standards of project management.
• Assist with the development of the scope of services and cost estimates for substation and P&C projects.
• Manage competing priorities using sound engineering and financial judgment to determine optimal solutions.
• Be flexible to handle shifting deadlines and scope changes.
• Have resource‑management skills and the ability to identify project barriers and mitigate them without schedule impacts.
• Manage and prioritize multiple projects simultaneously and work effectively under the pressure of deadlines and unexpected developments.
• Work extended hours or after hours when required.
• Preferable ability to create drawings using 3‑D CAD software.
• Preferable minimum of six years substation design experience.

• Work indoors in professional office settings.
• Sit for extended periods while performing computer‑based tasks.
• Frequent use of hands and fingers for typing, writing, and handling office equipment.
• Visual acuity to read printed materials, digital screens, detailed documents, and perform detailed work.
• Occasional standing, walking, bending, or reaching within the office environment. Ability to move between workstations and attend in‑person meetings.
• Lift and carry office materials or equipment weighing up to 10‑20 pounds, with or without assistance.
• Adequate hearing to participate in conversations, phone calls, and virtual meetings.
• Travel for meetings, training, or business purposes.

• Apply broad knowledge of principles and practices in a specific practice area.
• Independently evaluate, select, and adapt standard techniques, procedures, and criteria.
• Acquire general knowledge of principles and practices of related fields and function on multidisciplinary teams.
• Apply leadership and teamwork skills to plan, execute, and manage scopes, schedules, and budgets to meet project stakeholder needs.

• 6 + years

• B.S. Engineering or other technical degree

• Driver's license

• Support design of complete projects, systems, components, or processes.
• Frequently support preparation of complete plans, specifications, and other project documents.
• Support designs, conduct analyses, and interpret test data.

• Assign tasks to and direct other technical and non‑technical staff.
• Frequently plan and coordinate detailed aspects of the engineering work.
• Frequently prepare scopes, budgets, and…